A business name is not locked to its original proprietor. CAC has a filing for changing who is on record, though the details published on it are thinner than for registration itself.
What this filing is called
CAC refers to this as a change or correction of proprietors. It sits alongside other post-registration filings for a business name, such as a change of address, a change of name or objects, and cessation.
It is not part of the annual return, and it is not the same filing as closing the business name altogether. Each has its own purpose and its own place in CAC's system.
When you would use it
Use it when a partner joins the business, when one leaves, or when a proprietor's recorded details need correcting, such as a misspelt name carried over from the original application.
A business name with several proprietors does not need every one of them to file separately. One filing updates the record for the business name as a whole.
Businesses also use it when a proprietor dies or steps away, so the surviving partners are not left trading under a record that no longer reflects who owns the business.
Where it is filed and paid
CAC's post-registration filings for business names, including this one, are handled directly on the iCRP portal. That is the same place a business name's annual return and its cessation filing are paid.
Gather the outgoing or incoming proprietor's identification and details before you start, the same information CAC asked for at registration. See how to register a business name at CAC for what that original list looks like.
What this article cannot confirm about the fee
CAC's published fee schedule sets out figures for registration, annual returns and cessation, but it does not list a separate amount for a change of proprietors.
Rather than guess at a number, check the fee shown on the portal itself before you submit the filing. Do not assume it matches the registration fee or the annual return fee, since neither is confirmed to apply here.
What stays the same
The business name itself, its BN number and its registration date do not change when a proprietor changes. Only the people recorded against the business name update.
Contracts, bank accounts and licences held in the business name's own right are not usually affected either, though a bank may ask to see the updated CAC record once it is filed. Keep a copy of CAC's confirmation the same way you kept the original certificate.
Update your own records too: invoices, letterheads and any register you keep of who owns the business. CAC's record is the official one, but it is not the only place the change needs to show up.
If the change is significant enough that a fresh start makes more sense, our business name vs limited company comparison is worth reading before you file a correction instead. Browse the CAC registration hub for the rest of what running a registered business name involves.